Monday, July 27, 2015

I’m just back from some holidays with family in Nova Scotia. This gave me a chance for some golf with my brother and nephews. Great to be with them, but my game was awful. Nothing was working right at all and I could not figure out what I was doing wrong. Rather than wallow in the misery, I decided to check in with a teaching pro. I expected him to do the usual: look at my swing and tell me what I need to correct. The approach with this teacher was different. He simply took me back to the basics and reviewed the fundamentals: grip of the club, stance vis-à-vis the ball, alignment of feet, shoulders and hips to the target line, and posture of the body. It has made a difference … sort of.
What I need to do is always to remember the fundamentals and practice them until they come naturally. This will take a while.

There is a broader lesson here. Remembering and practicing the fundamentals of the Christian life keeps us in the proper “swing” and prevents the “wayward shots” that get us into a lot of trouble. Likewise, returning to the fundamentals is necessary when life feels like nothing is working and we are not sure what has gone wrong. Perhaps the acronym GASP can help us in this respect also.

Grip. We need a proper grip on reality. It is important to see things as they are, not as we wish or will them to be. The correct grip recognizes the truth of our human nature and lives within this truth. We are created by God for a life of eternal communion with him, made possible by the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ. We are weak and vulnerable and, therefore, dependent upon God and one another. At the same time, God has made us His beloved children, and calls upon us to turn to Him as our loving and merciful Father, who will not fail to provide for our every need. We lose this grip and enter into the world of illusion (with its accompanying confusion, heartache and anxiety) when we turn from God’s wisdom and providence, depend solely upon ourselves, and refuse to live within the limits established by nature.

Alignment. The follower of Jesus will strive to ensure, with the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit, that thought and behaviour patterns are in alignment with the Gospel.

Stance. What is my stance as a Christian in the face of the issues and challenges that confront us daily? What informs that stance? Here we need to understand well the central role of a properly formed conscience. Fundamental to the Christian life is understanding what conscience is, informing it prayerfully by reference to the teachings of Christ and his Church, and following its dictates. Necessary also is a daily examination of conscience so that I can repent of any wrongdoing.

Posture. Faith in Christ enables us to stand upright. Stress and the wide variety of life’s challenges can weigh upon us, guilt can burden us, fear can paralyze and cripple us. Jesus can turn all things to the good and wills to do so if we but ask. When we turn to him in faith, he enables us to stand upright with joy and confidence.

This picture shows one of the panels on the holy door at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. I have always loved it, and it speaks beautifully of the Good Shepherd reaching out to save the lost. That's the reason for hope.

About Me

Richard W. Smith was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia on April 28, 1959, and ordained to the priesthood on May 23, 1987. He was appointed Bishop of Pembroke on April 27, 2002. On March 22, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him to the Metropolitan See of Edmonton. In 2009 he was elected vice-president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.